Hawks Honoured

"Fifth Dwarfer" gets MBE for charity work.

23 June, 2017

Our warmest congratulations go to Tony Hawks, as the actor, writer and comedian has been awarded an MBE (Member of the British Empire) in the Queen's 2017 Birthday Honours.

You might think that Tony has been given this honour for Services to Playing Lots of Characters in Red Dwarf; but in fact, it's not to do with his entertainment work at all. Rather, he's been bestowed with the award for his tireless charity efforts, campaigning on behalf of Moldovan children.

Tony first became interested in the country in the late 1990s, when carrying out the tennis-playing bet (with fellow Dwarf alumnus Arthur Smith) that would lead to his bestselling book (and later movie) Playing the Moldovans at Tennis. Shortly afterwards, he was moved by what he'd seen in the country to help found the Tony Hawks Centre in Chisinau. Ever since then he's worked continually to help further fund the centre, which brings vital medical relief for children in the area.

Tony joins a select group of Red Dwarf guests who've been honoured by the Queen: Brian Cox (King, Stoke Me A Clipper) was awarded a CBE in 2002; Jenny Agutter (Professor Mamet, Psirens) and Timothy Spall (Andy, Back to Reality) received OBEs in 2012 and 2000 respectively; and Don Warrington (Binks, Holoship) became an MBE in 2008.

As someone who was involved with the show from its very earliest days, we're proud and delighted to see the good work that Tony has been doing for nearly two decades, and to see him recognised for it.

Find out more about Tony's Moldovan charity work at his website!